Belt game 1,202 · March 11, 1961
Boston Celtics take the belt
Boston Celtics beat Syracuse Nationals 126–116 at home to start reign 551 of the NBA belt, the 68th for the franchise.
Syracuse Nationals had held it since March 9, 1961, with 0 defenses over 2 days.
Boston Celtics held it for 10 days and 2 defenses, then lost it to Philadelphia 76ers on March 21, 1961.
551Reign number
68Team's reign
2Defenses
10Days held
Box score
Syracuse Nationals
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dolph Schayes | 38 | 24 | 20 | 3 | — | — | 7-20 | — | 10-11 |
| Dick Barnett | 24 | 18 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 8-18 | — | 2-4 |
| Hal Greer | 24 | 15 | 0 | 3 | — | — | 6-14 | — | 3-3 |
| Dave Gambee | 27 | 15 | 0 | 1 | — | — | 7-16 | — | 1-1 |
| Johnny Kerr | 35 | 11 | 14 | 5 | — | — | 4-14 | — | 3-4 |
| Al Bianchi | 20 | 9 | 0 | 4 | — | — | 3-14 | — | 3-4 |
| Joe Roberts | 12 | 7 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3-10 | — | 1-1 |
| Larry Costello | 28 | 7 | 0 | 7 | — | — | 2-10 | — | 3-3 |
| Barney Cable | 19 | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2-3 | — | 2-2 |
| Harvey Halbrook | 13 | 4 | 0 | 2 | — | — | 2-11 | — | 0-3 |
Boston Celtics
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bill Russell | 48 | 24 | 24 | 4 | — | — | 9-19 | — | 6-12 |
| Sam Jones | 27 | 20 | 12 | 1 | — | — | 9-17 | — | 2-2 |
| Tom Heinsohn | 23 | 20 | 0 | 2 | — | — | 7-16 | — | 6-10 |
| Bill Sharman | 21 | 17 | 0 | 4 | — | — | 7-11 | — | 3-3 |
| Frank Ramsey | 16 | 16 | 0 | 2 | — | — | 6-13 | — | 4-9 |
| K.C. Jones | 20 | 10 | 0 | 3 | — | — | 4-8 | — | 2-4 |
| Bob Cousy | 28 | 9 | 0 | 6 | — | — | 2-11 | — | 5-7 |
| Jim Loscutoff | 20 | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3-6 | — | 0-0 |
| Thomas Sanders | 18 | 2 | 0 | 1 | — | — | 1-4 | — | 0-0 |
| Gene Guarilia | 19 | 2 | 0 | 1 | — | — | 1-5 | — | 0-0 |
Player box scores: Historical NBA Data and Player Box Scores by Eoin Moore (CC0).